Introduction from the Chief Executive Health & Social Care - Anita Marsland

We are really proud of the excellent progress that the Department is making through the hard work of our staff and through the efforts of our partners in Knowsley. Partnership working in Knowsley is more than work with the Primary Care Trust and other major partners - it is founded on listening to people. We have made good progress in consulting with service users and carers and will build on this to inform our future plans to improve health and social care in Knowsley.

The fact that we are one of the fastest improving departments in the country is testament to the efforts we have made to improve performance and modernise the way we organise and deliver our services. Our 3-star rating is confirmation of the progress we have made in delivering high quality, effective social care services and our continued excellent prospects for improvement.

The vision for Knowsley will involve the further integration of Primary and Community Health and Social Care and is clearly the way forward if we are to tackle the health inequalities experienced by people in the borough. The model under development in Knowsley builds on the achievements of recent years and the capacity for change within the department.

The integration of the leadership of the Primary Care Trust and the Social Services Department under one Chief Executive and a joint Leadership Team offers many opportunities for innovation and efficiencies. Although we are still in the early stages of integration we can already evidence the positive outcomes of this approach for service users and patients.

Our continued improvements in 2004 will be sustained by the constant efforts of our staff and by unequivocal support across the Council and the Primary Care Trust.

What’s Different About Knowsley

During 2002 and in full consultation with staff, a wholesale review of the organisation of the Department resulted in modern and dynamic organisational structures being designed to support continued improvement in services and the developing agenda for integration.

Integration with Primary Care Trust

This has involved:

• Director of Social Services appointed as the Chief Executive of the newly formed Primary Care Trust. Anita Marsland now holds both posts and this rovides an excellent opportunity for further integration of Health and Social Care.
• Creation of a Leadership team of senior managers across the Social Services Department and the Primary Care Trust.
• The development of a joint Headquarters for both organisations as part of a joint estate improvement strategy.
• Plans through a project “Go Integral” underway to integrate Social Care Services and Community Health Services for Adults and Older People.
• The co-ordination of significant number of Health staff are working across social work teams to develop services for children.
• The Primary Care Trust and wider Council have been chosen as one of 6 national sites to develop new models of working for Children’s services.
• Social Services Department are positively developing a Child and Adolescent Mental Health Strategy in partnership with the 5 Borough Partnership.
• During May this year there was a National event held in the Borough “Integrating to Improve Services” which celebrated our journey to date, in relation to integration.

Star Rating

Award of Three Star status as a Social Services Department as recognition of Excellent Performance most areas.

Social Services Department

Out of Hours Service

The role of the Out of Hours Service is to make optimum response to the Departments’ statutory social work responsibility and to ensure that urgent problems of a social work nature, which cannot be safely left until the following day, are dealt with.

The service is available from 5.00pm to 9.00am on weekdays, all weekend and all public holidays.

A team manager will act as the initial contact from the paging service for all referrals. Two social workers will also be available, of which one, at all times must be an approved social worker as defined in the Mental Health Act.

Referrals to the service can be made by paging service 0151 221 2741 - user number 8295.

On receiving a referral, the team manager will make suitable enquiries as are necessary and possible to inform him/herself of the situation and the need for response.

Depending on the nature of the referral the co-ordinator may send out an emergency duty team social worker to make a fuller assessment or to effect action. The co-ordinator must also be available for consultation whilst the social worker is occupied and retains overall responsibility for the departments' actions throughout.

For further information on the service, telephone: 0151 443 4086 or email outofhours.dss@knowsley.gov.uk